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37 °F Forecast | Road Cams Wednesday, April 13, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend April 12, 2005 Ashland neighbors seek to close ‘nuisance’ shelter By JONEL ALECCIA Mail Tribune ASHLAND — Neighbors are calling for closure of a day-use homeless shelter because of problems they say range from panhandling and drug use to public defecation. But operators of the Interfaith Care Community of Ashland shelter at 144 S. Second St. claim they’re being unfairly targeted by the 8-month-old civil lawsuit. "I don’t think we’re that bad of neighbors," said Sharon Schreiber, director of the nonprofit agency formerly known as CERVS. Eight current and former neighbors of the 6-year-old shelter claimed in August that increased use and lax supervision have eroded tourism, decreased land values and impinged on residents’ right to enjoy their property. "This homeless shelter is clearly a nuisance to the neighborhood," wrote Tom Howser, an Ashland lawyer representing the neighbors. Advertisement "It spews people out at closing time to go aggravate the neighbors, panhandle, get high, trespass on private property and whatever else. It should be closed down." A two-day trial originally scheduled for June was postponed last week until August by Jackson County Circuit Court Judge Mark Schiveley. The lawsuit was filed by neighbors who live near the junction of Second and B streets. One neighbor, Sandra Proebstel, owns a triplex near the homeless shelter. "I have personally had to clean up human feces from the yard of my property ..." she wrote in a declaration. "Local residents have found needles, observed marijuana use, panhandling and conduct that has driven customers away from businesses in the area ..." But Schreiber said not all complaints about uncivilized behavior can be attributed to the shelter. "I feel badly that the neighbors feel the way they feel, but I think they are probably blaming us for things that happen in general in Ashland," she said. "Somebody’s homeless and six blocks away and they’re our (the shelter’s) people?" Since the lawsuit was filed in August, one neighbor — Mary Nelke — sold her next-door property at 134 S. Second St. The new owner, Stacy Fountain, bought the place March 14 for $749,000. She said she wasn’t aware of the lawsuit when she sealed the deal. "I think things are a lot better right now," she said Monday. "I haven’t noticed any problems." In 1998, city planners granted the agency a conditional use permit to operate a daytime shelter in the residential neighborhood. Since then, organizers have provided food, showers and other resources to a growing number of homeless people. A recent survey showed more than 1,200 homeless adults and children in Jackson County. "The prevailing good in general outweighs what they’re talking about," said Schreiber. She added that ICCA is negotiating plans to move to a new site, but that it might take a couple of years to complete. Meanwhile, Howser’s statement claimed that ICCA’s "do-gooder" intentions shouldn’t excuse the agency from enforcing decency. Connie Saldana, a local advocate for the homeless, said closing the shelter — like mowing Bear Creek Greenway blackberry bushes — is a superficial solution to a community-wide dilemma. "You’re not solving the problem if you’re kicking them out of there," she said. Sean Gordon, a 31-year-old Ashland man who’s been homeless, said attitudes in the city seem to be changing. "Many years ago, in the 1980s, there was a lot more tolerance in Ashland for homelessness, before the gentrification," he said. Reach reporter JoNel Aleccia at 776-4465, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg Distance Education Diamonds Slippers Student Loans afsa teleconferencing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Tatoo Fasa Advertisement s